Das Rheingold is the first of the four Ring operas,
it sets the scene with the theft of the Rhine gold, first by Alberich and
then Wotan on behalf of the giants on a train of greed that will inexorably lead
to the demise of the gods.

Die Walküre introduces Brünnhilde,
daughter of the mighty god, Wotan. Brünnhilde's attempts to protect the siblings-lovers
Siegmund and infuriates Wotan, he encircles his disobedient daughter with a
ring of fire that only a hero can break.

Siegfried
introduces the hero, Siegfried, son of the demi-gods Siegmund and Sieglinde. Though raised by the dwarf Mime, Siegfried discovers his true identity and forges the magic
sword, Nothung, with which he slays Mime and the dragon Fafner. He then defies the Wanderer (Wotan in disguise) and rescues sleeping Brünnhilde from the ring of fire. The opera ends
with their radiant love song.

Die Götterdämmerung is the
fourth and final Ring opera. Brünnhilde now has the Ring, given to her by Siegfried.
But evil Hagen dupes Siegfried into betraying his love for Brünnhilde, and the Ring is returned to Siegfried. On the banks of the Rhine, Hagen murders Siegfried.
A distraught Brünnhilde takes the Ring from her dead lover and rides into her
funeral pyre. Hagen snatches the Ring but is drowned in the flooding Rhine by the
Rhinemaidens. The Ring returns to the Rhine. Valhalla goes up in flames of Apocalypse, marking the end time of gods.